Gather 'Round the Table

Welcome to the Gather 'Round the Table blog hop hosted by Amber of Follow the Yellow Brick Home.

If you're following the tour in order, then you were just at Belle Bleu Interiors -

 Shannon's home is beautiful and her style is impeccable.

As I was setting up to take my pics for "An Al Fresco Thanksgiving" last week, the sky began to rapidly change color - all due to the fires in Ventura County.

I moved inside and went ahead with my photos despite the sky turning darker by the minute so please bear with the editing - it was difficult to get the colors and clarity right with dark photos. 

We'll be away for Thanksgiving, but my cousin is coming the day after and I'm planning a festive brunch for her visit using my Pfaltzgraff Pistoulet dishes

based on the drawings from the book, The Secrets of Pistoulet, by Jana Fayne Kolpen.

The flowers in my garden are limited, but I found exactly what I need - fortunately I only needed yellow flowers for 3 vases!

The "vases" are pottery yogurt containers my sister saved each morning and brought home from her frequent London business trips.

The green plates are not part of the Pistoulet collection, but I like pairing the green with the yellow.

I embroidered the napkins in the summer when we moved out for our bathroom remodel - I kept my fingers busy at night while we watched television.

The center piece called for something more and I found this narrow roll of butcher paper in the garage.

 I'm told Steve's mom used it somehow on the backing of her oil paintings, but it works perfectly with rosemary from the garden to add interest on the table.

The pitcher of flowers has been on the dining room table for weeks - dried roses and fresh eucalyptus branches.

When I bought the yellow handled flatware I had no idea how well it would match the dishes.

I love how this table setting turned out and when we get back in town from Thanksgiving with our daughter,

I just need to look at my post as a reminder on how to set the table.

I'll let Steve worry about what to serve 

while I hunt in the garden for more yellow flowers for the vases.

And now, it's time for you to head over to visit Paula at Virginia Sweet Pea - you will love her style.

And be sure to visit all the different blogs for loads of Thanksgiving inspiration.

An InLinkz Link-up

I'm thankful for . . .

I know it's a little early for this post, but two people on Instagram got me thinking about thankfulness.

Yesterday one person asked, "what are you thankful for today?" and my reply was "nothing". 

I went on to explain that by nothing I meant that I had absolutely nothing I had to do and after a busy week I was thankful for no commitments.

The second person, Rhiann of @starry_sky_farm posted this picture and I responded.

It got me thinking of all I am thankful for . . .

Mexican sunflowers in the garden - at least one blooms each day.

Walks on the beach with friends - do you see that little guy in the wet sand?

Blogging friends like Connie of Crafty Home Cottage who just sent me the cutest Christmas banner

and Cindy of Cloches and Lavender who sent me this wonderful book I won in her giveaway.

Finding the perfect little flowers in the garden for a table setting I'm

 working on for the "Gather 'Round the Table" blog hop.

And I'm especially thankful for this little guy we'll see in just 10 days - I'm definitely missing the curls after his first haircut.

What are you thankful for this month?

A Coastal Thanksgiving

I am honored to be participating in the Thanksgiving Tablescapes Blog Tour, Day Five, hosted by Kristie of French Creek Farmhouse.

Kristie gathered an awesome group of bloggers to share inspiring Thanksgiving tables all week with a different group of bloggers each day - visit French Creek Farmhouse for links to today's posts as well as posts for all 5 days.

I am a "shop the house" kind of decorator 

and if there is one thing we have a lot of, it is shells.

 I had a couple of large white pumpkins so the only things I bought were a few Baby Boos and fresh eucalyptus to add to the shells.

I prefer fresh flowers, but this centerpiece had lots of little gaps which I filled with faux white flowers and a few tufts of cotton.

Beachy plates called for something other than a pumpkin so I filled cups with succulents, sea glass and a star fish to keep with the coastal theme.

I finished off the place settings with grapevine wreaths as chargers, a fun salad plate and flatware envelopes I have had for years.

The napkins are a gift from my sweet friend Donna of @lilyfieldsvintage - several years ago I posted on Instagram that I wasn't going to finish embroidering napkins for my Thanksgiving table and despite never having met, she told me to come down to the shop to pick what I wanted.

I love the texture of the quilt I use as a tablecloth combined with the hand embroidered napkins.

The colors in the place settings match perfectly with the centerpiece

and everything works well in our blue and white dining room.

This view from the entry makes me smile

as does this view from the living room.

I'm thankful to the sea for providing inspiration and lots of shells

for this Coastal Thanksgiving.

Don't forget to head over to French Creek Farmhouse for links to all the posts.